It's only 28 miles east. And if you have ever tried driving to an isles game it sucks, almost as bad as going to a Devils game in the meadowlands. Newark has easy access from NYC, Barclays will too.

And those saying they are relocating need to look at a map, just because they aren't in Nassau County anymore doesn't make this a frnachise relocation. The Caps and Devils both moved from suburbs into the city. I'm sure other teams have as well. 28 miles can't be the biggest move from one arena into another.

Here is more on the link. There are concerns that the arena will only hold less than 15K for hockey and this is not a optimal move, but at least it keeps the franchise in the NYC area. Woudl be like the Pens moving up to Cranberrry or something.

DelPen wrote:It's only 28 miles east. And if you have ever tried driving to an isles game it sucks, almost as bad as going to a Devils game in the meadowlands. Newark has easy access from NYC, Barclays will too.

And those saying they are relocating need to look at a map, just because they aren't in Nassau County anymore doesn't make this a frnachise relocation. The Caps and Devils both moved from suburbs into the city. I'm sure other teams have as well. 28 miles can't be the biggest move from one arena into another.

I think it's also pretty expensive train ride to get out there in long island now too....i want to say it may be like $50 round trip.

The closest train station is still a 15 minute drive with no traffic to the Nassau Cooliseum.

Time Warner Arena in Charlotte also has the horse shoe seating, horrible for hockey since it was designed for basketball, but when you already draw less than 15,000 people in a crappy location then 15,000 in the heart of Brooklyn at a MAJOR transportation hub in Atlantic Yards this will be easy and help their bttom line.

When Atlantic City had a team in the ECHL they played at Boardwalk Hall and they also had that kind of horse shoe design. It was really weird because in the empty end was the giant stage and seating for the Miss America pagents so the ice rink wasnt even in the center of the building. And they didnt have seats on the glass so it almost looked like the Winter Classic where theres a good bit of space between the ice and the first row of stands. Really weird looking.

I went to a game in Phoenix before they moved to their new building. They played in a building built as a Basketball site, and when I went to that game I found that the Scoreboard actually sat over one of the bluelines instead of the center dot.

It was a mess at the one end, and I would never pay to sit on the odd angles and site lines that result.

The Islanders are just a joke. That lease is in a building that will not do a single thing to adapt to them. They are still a second class citizen in the NY area. Even the Devils have their own building.

For many current Islander fans, the trip will not be more difficult, and in fact will be easier for some. But I have a heard time imagining die-hard Ranger fans who live in Brooklyn suddenly turning and becoming Islanders fans, especially with the team being so bad.